Mac Kung Fu, 2nd Edition

Tip 136

Create Doc Templates and Boilerplate Text

Let’s say you’ve created a form letter that you periodically send out to different people, changing only the name and address details. Some word processors allow you to create document templates. These are master files that, when opened, will create a new file containing the document’s contents. But did you know that this feature is built into your Mac, and you can use it with any kind of file in practically any application?

It’s also possible to automatically insert boilerplate (that is, stock phrase) text into a document or new email using OS X’s Text Substitution feature.

Creating and Using a Template

To create a template, simply create a new file and then save it as usual, or locate an existing ...